DO YOU KNOW WHO TO VOTE FOR ON TUESDAY?

 

Millions of people are heading to the polls on Tuesday – do you have an election in your area? Prepare to cast a ballot with our 2021 Democrats.com Voter Guide, where you can review endorsements in your area from dozens of progressive organizations.     In this guide, you’ll see endorsements from groups like #VOTEPROCHOICE, Run for Something, and Higher Heights PAC -- as well as from leaders like President Barack Obama. If you’re in one of the 29 states with elections this year, make a plan to vote before November 2. If you have any questions or encounter any problems in the voting process, call the Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE. Thank you for all you do! Bob Fertik

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REMEMBERING TRUMP. PAST POSTS THAT REMIND US OF THE "REAL DONALD TRUMP.": THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: LETTING THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, AND THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT, OFF THE HOOK. (UPDATE).

 The Special Counsel defined "coordination" as an "agreement-tacit or express-between the Trump Campaign and the Russian government on election interference."

IF THIS IS THE ONLY DEFINITION USED, THE SPECIAL COUNSELS REPORT CLEARS UP NOTHING AND OPENS
UP SOME DISTURBING POSSIBILITIES.

HOW SO?

IF WE ACCEPT THAT THE ABOVE DEFINITION IS THE 
SOLE MEASUREMENT FOR PROSECUTION, IT LEAVES US WITH  THE FOLLOWING POSSIBLE SCENARIOS:

SCENARIO #1- A RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT OPERATIVE ENLISTS A TRUMP CAMPAIGN WORKER WITH A PLAN TO AID DONALD TRUMP, BY GATHERING AND DISTRIBUTING INFORMATION THAT IS ANECDOTAL IN NATURE, AND FULL OF INNUENDO AND UNSUBSTANTIATED INFORMATION.

SCENARIO #2- A TRUMP ELECTION OFFICIAL APPROACHES A RUSSIAN NATIONAL,WHO CONDUCTS BUSINESS IN THE U.S. THE REASON? HE ASKS THE BUSINESSMAN IF HE COULD OBTAIN "SPECIAL INFORMATION" THAT WOULD AID DONALD TRUMP IN WINNING THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

THESE ARE EXAMPLES, NOT ACCUSATIONS. THE POINT IS THIS: IF SCENARIOS LIKE THIS, OR OTHER SIMILAR ONES DID OCCUR, NO LEGAL ACTION WOULD BE TAKEN BY THE SPECIAL COUNSEL. WHY? BECAUSE IN NEITHER CASE WAS THE DEFINITION OF PROSECUTORIAL CONDUCT MET.

REMEMBER, IN THE ABOVE DEFINITION, THE "TRUMP CAMPAIGN," AND THE "RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT" HAD TO
BOTH BE INVOLVED, NOT JUST ONE. THE EXAMPLES OF A TRUMP CAMPAIGN WORKER, OR A RUSSIAN BUSINESSMAN,
SHOW US THAT "COLLUSION," OR "ELECTION INTERFERENCE" COULD OCCUR. HOWEVER, THE CONCLUSION OF THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN BEING INNOCENT OF SUCH ACCUSATIONS, AS THE SUMMARY LETTER IMPLIES, WOULD BE VALID, EVEN IF CRIMINAL ACTS WERE PRESENT IN BOTH SCENARIOS.

THE CONCLUSION IS SIMPLY THIS: THE DEFINITION USED BY THE MUELLER COMMITTEE IS SO NARROW, WHEN REFERRING TO "COORDINATION" TO VIOLATE ELECTION LAW(S), THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT, AND JUST ABOUT ANYONE ELSE COULD HAVE COMMITTED ACTS OF "CONSPIRACY" OR "ELECTION INTERFERENCE", BUT WOULD NOT BE CHARGED UNLESS THERE WAS A FORMAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO. 

THIS DOES NOT EXCLUDE AGENTS OF ONE, OR BOTH, ACTING INDEPENDENTLY WITHOUT THE "OFFICIAL " APPROVAL OF THE LEADESHIP. IN FACT, AGENTS OF ONE OR BOTH COULD HAVE BEEN "ENCOURAGED" TO ACT IN A CERTAIN MANNER TO BENEFIT THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, BUT WITHOUT AN ACKNOWLEDGED AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE "OFFICIAL LEADERSHIP," NO ONE COULD BE CHARGED CRIMINALLY. THIS EXTREMELY NARROW DEFINITION ESSENTIALLY MADE "CONSPIRACY", "COORDINATION", OR "ELECTION INTERFERENCE" PERFECTLY LEGAL, WITH THE INFORMATION  PROVIDED TO, AND USED BY, "UNOFFICIAL" GROUPS WORKING ON BEHALF OF THE RUSSIAN GOVT., AND/OR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.

OF COURSE, NONE OF THIS EXCLUDES THE POSSIBILITY OF BREAKING INTO COMPUTER PROGRAMS THAT TALLY AND PUBLISH ELECTION RESULTS, AND ALTERING THE FINAL NUMBERS.

SO REMEMBER, THERE WAS MORE THAN JUST ONE WAY TO GUARANTEE A TRUMP VICTORY IN 2016.

NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week. ASSOCIATED PRESS.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

OCTOBER,29,2021.

A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. Here are the facts:

___

Fauci had no involvement in study on monkey threat responses

CLAIM: Dr. Anthony Fauci’s experiments include one that magnified terror in the brains of monkeys and subjected them to frightening stimuli.

THE FACTS: A tweet that circulated widely across platforms this week falsely suggested a study decried by animal activists was among “Fauci’s experiments,” despite the fact that the nation's top infectious disease expert had no part in the research, nor did the institute he directs, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “Reading through Fauci’s experiments and the one I find most alarming is the use of an acid to destroy a region of monkeys’ brains to magnify terror,” read the tweet, first posted by the conservative commentator Candace Owens. “They then simulated images of spiders and tormented them with fear. Human DNA is 97% identical to apes. Why fund that research?” In reality, the research mentioned in the tweet was conducted by researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health, a division of the National Institutes of Health that is separate from the one Fauci heads. “Dr. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is not involved and has never been involved in this study,” NIMH’s press team said in an emailed statement. “Additionally, the study was not funded by NIAID.” NIMH also disputed the framing of the tweet, saying that while the study did use lesioning techniques to alter the brains of monkeys, it was “critically important” research to learn more about brain circuits that help with emotion expression and regulation. In the 2019 study, researchers used injections of acid to target areas of the brain in rhesus macaques. They then observed the monkeys responding to a fake rubber snake, a fake spider and neutral stimuli. The study authors said their work provided “insights into the neural regulation of defensive responses to threat and inform the etiology and treatment of anxiety disorders in humans.” While the study in question found monkeys with the lesions had an increased defensive response to threat, other research has found that brain lesions blunted or had no effect on emotional threat responses in monkeys. Several animal activist groups and federal lawmakers have publicly criticized this research and other studies involving monkeys at the NIH. Responding to such criticism, NIMH defended its use of the primates, saying, “monkeys are critical for studying these brain circuits because their brains are structurally and functionally similar to human brains.” NIMH added that animals used in its research are protected by laws, regulations and policies that are intended to ensure a commitment to animal welfare. Owens did not respond to an emailed request for comment. Her tweet followed scrutiny of several experiments using dogs — some of which were funded in part by the Fauci-run NIAID.

— Associated Press writer Ali Swenson in New York contributed this report with additional reporting by Associated Press writer Sophia Tulp in Atlanta.

___

Incorrect comparisons made between refugee aid, social security payments

CLAIM: Refugees resettled in the U.S. receive $2,125 per month from the government, while Social Security recipients only receive an average of $1,400 per month.

THE FACTS: Posts sharing inaccurate comparisons between the amount of government funding given to refugees seeking resettlement in the U.S. and monthly payments received by Social Security beneficiaries have been circulating for months on Twitter and other platforms. The State Department defines a refugee under the Immigration and Nationality Act as someone who has experienced persecution or has a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group, making them eligible for resettlement in U.S. communities. Social media users have incorrectly claimed that refugees receive $2,125 per month from the government, while Social Security recipients who have been paying into the system for years only receive an average of $1,400 per month. “The assertion made in the Twitter post is inaccurate,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price wrote in an email to the AP. The State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration offers a one-time, per capita amount of $2,275 to resettlement agencies, and of that amount, $1,225 is available for agencies to use toward refugees' initial housing, food, clothing and furniture costs. The rest of the funds go toward services including assistance with cultural orientation, assistance with enrollment in English language services and school, access to immigration assistance and referral to other social, medical and employment services. Assistance is only provided directly to refugees in the “rare event” they have established family or friend relationships who are able to meet their basic needs, such as housing, Price said. In that case, a one-time payment of $1,225 per person is provided directly. After the initial resettlement period, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement works through individual states and nonprofit organizations to connect refugees with language, employment and social services. The Office of Refugee Resettlement’s web page states that its Cash and Medical Assistance program, which is similar to Medicaid, lasts for up to eight months from the date of arrival in the U.S. Refugees are also eligible for public benefits such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid. Social Security helps older Americans, workers who become disabled and families in which a spouse or parent dies. Most workers have to pay Social Security taxes for as long as they are working and qualify for retirement benefits after about 10 years of work. Workers are eligible for the retirement benefits in their 60s, depending on their birth year. When it comes to payments, the Social Security Administration’s monthly statistical snapshot for September 2021, the most recent data, shows that beneficiaries on average received about $1,439 monthly. However, this number changes from month to month and varies greatly depending on the type of benefit. 

— Associated Press writer Sophia Tulp in Atlanta contributed this report.

___

Japan has not substituted ivermectin for COVID-19 vaccines

CLAIM: “Japan has pulled the vaccines and substituted ivermectin — and in one month, wiped COVID out in that country.”

THE FACTS: An article published this week by a conservative radio host recirculated a months-old false claim that Japan had halted the use of coronavirus vaccines in favor of using the parasite drug ivermectin, and that the switch has led to the eradication of coronavirus cases. The claims are not true. Japan has continued to administer vaccines and has not authorized ivermectin for treating COVID-19. The drug is used to treat infections of roundworms and other parasites in humans and animals. Many health officials have warned against ivermectin’s use for COVID-19, saying that it could cause harmful side effects and that there’s little evidence it helps. The drug is not listed by the Japanese government as an approved medicine to treat the coronavirus, according to the Japan Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency’s list of medical products approved for COVID-19. The same list shows that the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines all remain authorized under Special Approval for Emergency use in the country. The false assertion that ivermectin gained approval for use among COVID patients in Japan emerged in August after Haruo Ozaki, the chairman of the Tokyo Medical Association, said at a news conference that the drug may have benefits for COVID patients but needs to be studied further. Some people online misinterpreted this as an endorsement of the drug and mischaracterized Ozaki as a government official. But the Tokyo Medical Association is an independent organization. It is not a government agency and does not reflect the official stance of the Japanese Ministry of Health. While Japan did suspend the use of about 1.63 million doses of the Moderna vaccine in August after contamination was found in unused vials, it did not totally stop administering the vaccine. The Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines were unaffected. Japan has recorded more than 20,000 new COVID-19 cases and more than 650 deaths in the past month, though daily new cases have seen a steep decline from when they surged around the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. Experts say an effective vaccine campaign, widespread use of face masks and subdued nightlife could be credited with the decline. About 70% of the population is fully vaccinated.

— Sophia Tulp

___

Children in video died in stampede, not after receiving COVID-19 vaccine

CLAIM: Video shows 13 children lying on the floor dead after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine at a school in South Africa.

THE FACTS: The video, taken in 2020, shows children who died in a stampede at school in Kenya. The Department of Health in South Africa confirmed to the AP that the claim being shared was false. The graphic video, which shows a row of children on stretchers with the sounds of wailing in the background, is accompanied by comments that falsely state the children died from the COVID-19 vaccine. It circulated widely across social media and on Telegram with claims the media was not covering the deaths and that tech companies were blocking the video. The Department of Health of South Africa confirmed to the AP that they had not had any reports of deaths of children due to the vaccine. “In fact, this is just misinformation designed to mislead our people, parents and guardians in particular,” Foster Mohale, a health department spokesperson, said in an email. South Africa is not vaccinating children in schools. Those 12 and above can choose to go to vaccination centers to get shot, but it is completely voluntary. The Associated Press reported on the stampede, which took place at Kakamega Primary School in Kenya in February 2020. It occurred after students trampled over each other as they were released for the school day. Fourteen children died in the stampede and 39 others were injured. The AP reported that grief-stricken parents wailed and collapsed at the three hospitals where the bodies of the dead were taken. The cause of the stampede was unclear at the time. The recent false claims about the video began circulating this week after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration backed a low dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children in the U.S. The panel voted that the vaccine’s benefits in preventing COVID-19 outweighed any potential risks.

— Associated Press writer Beatrice Dupuy in New York contributed this report.

___

Video shows California ceremony, not US troops in Taiwan

CLAIM: A video shows the U.S. military in Taiwan. 

THE FACTS: The video in question was filmed in front of City Hall in Monterey Park, California, and shows an annual memorial ceremony commemorating a 1937 battle between Chinese and Japanese troops. A post that circulated on Twitter recently showed a video of people marching with American and Taiwanese flags. A tweet in Chinese falsely claimed that the video showed the U.S. military in Taiwan. The video can be found circulating on Twitter as early as 2018. But the procession was filmed thousands of miles away, outside Monterey Park City Hall, Amy Wang, press division director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles, told The Associated Press. The event is hosted each July by the local Taiwanese American community. She could not confirm which year the video was taken, but said those shown in the clip are part of the Taiwanese American community. The annual event commemorates the Marco Polo Bridge incident, a July 1937 conflict between Chinese and Japanese troops near the bridge outside Beijing, which triggered the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War. The U.S. switched diplomatic recognition of China from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, but continues to maintain a robust, unofficial relationship with Taiwan. On Thursday, Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen confirmed that some U.S. troops were on the ground there, the AP reported. 

— Associated Press writer Arijeta Lajka in New York contributed this report.

___

Western New York church did not get a liquor license

CLAIM: An image of a newspaper article shows that True Bethel Baptist Church in Buffalo, New York, recently became the first church in New York to obtain a liquor license.

THE FACTS: This claim and the image it appeared in have circulated widely online this week, but they are both fake, True Bethel Baptist Church and The Buffalo News confirmed. “True Bethel Baptist Church becomes the first Church in NYS to receive a Liquor License: Rev. Darius Pridgen thanks Mayor Brown,” read the fake headline in the image, which was made to look like an issue of The Buffalo News. “This is in fact a fake story,” said Amy Yakawiak, information specialist at The Buffalo News, who said it wasn’t clear where the false image originated. “This is completely false,” said Danetta McKinnon, pastor of administration at True Bethel Baptist Church. McKinnon noted that the bogus claim had been circulating since early September. An internet search did not reveal any credible news articles making this claim, and a search of the New York State Liquor Authority’s website did not turn up any legitimate liquor license records matching True Bethel Baptist Church.

— Ali Swenson

___

Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck

FASCISM=TODAYS GOP.

 

REMEMBERING TRUMP. PAST POSTS THAT REMIND US OF THE "REAL DONALD TRUMP.": IF YOU WON'T CHEAT FOR ME, THEN YOUR STATE VOTE TOTALS DON'T COUNT.

 

YAHOO NEWS.

''I just want to find 11,780 votes': Trump attacks Georgia officials as crucial runoffs approach. 

In other words, "the people of Georgia cannot be counted on to vote 

for me, so we need to take the choice away."

ATLANTA — Just two days before the Georgia runoffs that will determine the leadership

 of the Senate and one day before a rally on behalf of the Republican candidates, President 

Trump has continued to unload on the GOP officials leading the state.

In an extraordinary development, Trump attempted to cajole Republican Georgia Secretary 

of State Brad Raffensperger, according to the Washington Post, which published audio 

of their call on Sunday.

“So look. All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have,” Trump told Raffensperger, laying bare his overriding goal of overturning the November election.

President-elect Joe Biden won Georgia on Nov. 3, the first time the state had gone for a Democratic candidate since 1992. Despite three vote recounts, Trump has continued to insist that the voting was tainted, casting a wide range of allegations without any credible evidence to back up his assertions.

Trump continued to attack Raffensperger while addressing their call hours before the Post published the audio.“I spoke to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger yesterday about Fulton County and voter fraud in Georgia,” Trump tweeted. “He was unwilling, or unable, to answer questions such as the ‘ballots under table’ scam, ballot destruction, out of state ‘voters,’ dead voters, and more. He has no clue!”

“Respectfully, President Trump,” Raffensperger replied on 

Twitter, “What you're saying is not true. The truth will come out.”

RESPECT TRUMP? THAT'S AN OXYMORON.

[PETITION} DAVID, THIS IS A GENERATION-DEFINING MOMENT. OXFAM AMERICA.

 

David, We’re in a code red: Ahead of the upcoming UN Climate Conference, sign our petition for equitable climate action >> If you believe in a more equal future, climate advocacy should be at the top of your list of actions. The reality of the climate crisis is that the poorest people who are the least responsible for the problem are suffering the most. At Oxfam, we know climate change is one of the primary drivers of hunger, forced migration, poverty, and inequality all over the world. The United States is responsible for more than 25% of all historical CO2 emissions. In contrast, most countries across Africa and South America have emitted less than 0.5% in the last 250 years. Climate change is a global problem, but substantial progress won’t be possible without the US taking action today, not 10 years from now. Now is the time to ramp up the pressure ahead of the upcoming UN Climate Conference (COP26) later this week. If you agree, add your voice to our call for President Biden to: Reduce emissions in a just and equitable way. Support people on the frontlines of extreme climate by scaling up funding and investments in adaptation to meet the needs of local communities, combat hunger through food security, and build resilience. Ensure historically marginalized and vulnerable communities — including women and Indigenous communities — have a voice on the global stage in advancing the climate agenda. Sign the petition Starting this Sunday, decision-makers from around the world will gather to decide our planet’s future. COP26 is an opportunity for world leaders to join forces on green initiatives and update plans laid out five years ago in the Paris Agreement. Experts have been warning us for years, but the COP26 comes just as humanity enters a code red for climate action: record-shattering temperatures, intensifying storms, and rising sea levels are just a preview of what’s to come unless we act immediately. This isn’t tomorrow’s problem: climate change is happening now, and it’s hurting the most vulnerable among us. Please add your name to our call for climate action. Then, when you’re done, invite others to join us by sharing this graphic on Facebook and Twitter. Be a climate advocate Thank you for your support, Gina Cummings Vice President of Advocacy, Alliances, and Policy Oxfam America Action Fund P.S. There’s still time to register for our upcoming webinar with climate scientist, Katharine Hayhoe, and Oxfam partner organizations. We’ll discuss her new book, “Saving Us”, and the part we can all play in creating a new, more equitable future through climate action. Join us on Thursday, October 28, 2021, at 12:00 PM ET. Register here >

Donate | Contact us Oxfam 226 Causeway Street, 5th Floor Boston, Massachusetts 02114 USA

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH SENATOR JOE MANCHIN? A SHORT MESSAGE.

What do you do when you have "Democrats" like Joe Manchin, Senator from West Virginia, who decide 

that their opinion alone should be the one that sets economic policy for all 50 states.

It would take Moral and Intellectual Courage, but if I was a Senate Democrat whose constituents would 

suffer because Manchin refused to compromise on the proposed budget, I would oppose anything that 

is beneficial to the people of West Virginia. No matter what committee I'm on, or what form that benefit 

would take, Economic, Social, Educational etc., if Manchin wants it, I'll try to block it.

Unfair? Really? Aren't your constituents just as important? Why would you aid someone who cares nothing for the people of your state? Perhaps you should ask the voters you represent what they think?

BLAST FROM THE PAST: FEATURE ARTICLES. WORKING WITH TRUMP, AND THE REPUBLICANS: DEMOCRATS, WILL THEY EVER LEARN? (UPDATE).

 

(THIS UPDATE ON 1/15/2017.)

TO THE DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP:

THIS IS HILARIOUS; YOU HAND DONALD TRUMP THE ELECTION, EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE OBVIOUS PROBLEMS WITH THE VOTER COUNTS IN CERTAIN KEY STATES, (SEE MY SERIES OF POSTS ON THIS ISSUE), AND YOUR "SHOCKED" BY HIS BEHAVIOR. YOU HAD A CHANCE TO STAND UP, AND DEMAND, AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE NONSENSICAL RETURNS WHICH GAVE HIM THE WHITE HOUSE. AS FAR AS I KNOW, NOT ONE OF YOU DID. YOUR COMPLAINTS MEAN NOTHING TO THOSE WHO WILL SUFFER WHEN THIS DEMAGOGUE TAKES OFFICE.

- DAVID.

Trying to understand the Democratic Parties response to the Donald Trump win in the Presidential Election has been difficult.  It is almost surreal, for it is like they have never met THIS REPUBLICAN PARTY.

Think I am being Unfair. Consider This:

Your a Republican, planning future strategy. You have seen your party go through Eight Years

of an Obama Presidency, and no matter how often your Party Thwarted Attempts by the President and other Progressive Democrats to help the American People, your Diatribe, Half- Truths, and Race Baiting etc., have managed to fool enough of the Electorate so that you lost nothing at the polls.

What is even better, YOU NEVER HAD TO SEEK OUT COMPROMISE. NO MATTER WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID, ENOUGH PEOPLE TOOK IT AS TRUTH, AND BLAMED MOST OF THE COUNTRIES PROBLEMS ON THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT.

USING RELIGIOUS ZEALOTRY, WHAT YOU COULDN'T BLAME ON THE PRESIDENT, YOU PUT ON THOSE WHO DIDN'T BLINDLY AGREE WITH YOUR BRAND OF CHRISTIANITY, WHICH IS NOT A DOCTRINE OF PEACE, BUT ONE OF HATE AND PREJUDICE.

However, it gets even better. After eight years of Economic and Social Progress, with the country much better off than it was before President Obama took office, you were able to elect an Unscrupulous Demagogue to the highest office in the land. Running on a Platform of almost Pure Hate, appealing to the Basest of Human Emotions, it was a campaign Histories Dictators would be proud of. Yet, even with all this..

...the Democrat Party is accepting the President Elects offer to heal the Division in this Country.

(A Division caused almost exclusively by your parties words and actions).

What does this tell you?

-  THAT NO MATTER HOW REPREHENSIBLE THE REPUBLICAN PARTIES BEHAVIOR IS, IT DOESN'T MATTER.

-  REACH OUT TO ALL THE BIGOTS, RACISTS, HOMOPHOBES, AND OTHER HATERS THAT YOU CAN, IT DOESN'T MATTER.

-  PROMOTE ANGER, VIOLENCE, AND UNCONSTITUTIONAL BEHAVIOR. IT DOESN'T

MATTER.

IN THE END, IT IS THE DEMOCRATS WHO WILL COME CALLING, HOPING, THAT THIS

TIME, YOU WILL BE REASONABLE.

THE FOOLS...

WE NEED THE WOMANS HEALTH PROTECTION ACT. U.S. REP. ADAM SCHIFF.

 David,

Roe v. Wade was decided almost 50 years ago, and in the decades since, we’ve seen the right to an abortion challenged, criticized, and attacked over and over again. Republicans have advanced a malicious private right of action scheme to prevent women from having autonomy over their own bodies and health decisions. It’s time for the right to choose to be codified into law and protected from GOP State Houses and conservative judges.

That’s why it’s so important for the Senate to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act. After the House passed this historic bill by a narrow 218-211 vote, the Senate must stand up and do the same.

Mitch McConnell and his Republican colleagues have used bad faith, straw man arguments to restrict women's reproductive rights. They’ve even packed the court with conservative justices with the goal of overturning Roe v. Wade. We need to be forceful and loud in saying enough is enough and we need to take action.

I hope you’ll join me in signing this petition demanding the Senate to hold a vote on the Women’s Health Protection Act. Now.

ADD YOUR NAME

Until the right to an abortion is codified into law, that choice, which should only be determined by a woman and her doctor, will be eroded by the extreme right across the country – just as we’ve seen in the last few months.

Thanks for being by our side as we stand up to the Senate and tell them to stop playing political games with a woman’s autonomy over their body.

— Adam

PAID FOR AND AUTHORIZED BY SCHIFF FOR CONGRESS.

Obama assails 'politics of meanness' as he campaigns in Virginia governor race. YAHOO NEWS AND AOL.

 YAHOO NEWS.

 JON WARD. 

RICHMOND, VA — Former President Barack Obama exhorted Virginians to support Democrat Terry McAuliffe’s candidacy for governor, warning of the dire consequences for the state and the country if he were to lose.

Obama presented the choice for Virginians as between McAuliffe, who he said would keep moving the state forward, and Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin, who he said has been “encouraging the lies and conspiracy theories that we’ve had to live through all this time,” referring to the ongoing attempt by former President Donald Trump to falsely claim that the 2020 election was illegitimate.

Obama also said Younkin has attempted to “quietly cultivate support from those who seek to tear down our democracy.”

Obama mentioned a recent campaign event hosted by grassroots Republicans in support of Youngkin, where attendees recited the Pledge of Allegiance to an American flag that they said was carried in D.C. on Jan. 6, the day of the violent assault by Trump supporters on the U.S. Capitol.

“When you don't separate yourselves from that, when you don't think that's a problem, that's a problem,” Obama said.

Youngkin called that event “weird and wrong,” but Obama and other Democrats brought up Youngkin’s push for “election integrity” — a phrase used often as a placeholder for disproven claims about the 2020 election — and his call to audit voting machines, which already takes place.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe dances on stage before a campaign event with former President Barack Obama at Virginia Commonwealth University Saturday in Richmond, Va. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

“Either he actually believes in the same conspiracy theories ... or he’s willing to go along with it, to say or do anything to get elected,” Obama said. “And maybe that’s worse, because that says something about character ... There’s some things that are more important than getting elected, and maybe American democracy is one of those things.”

McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin are in a tight race ahead of the Nov. 2 election.

Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter told Yahoo News that the Republican candidate “is a political outsider that does things differently and focuses on the issues that are affecting Virginia voters.”

Obama spoke at Virginia Commonwealth University here in the capital city of the commonwealth, a location chosen to reach out to two voting blocs that skew most reliably Democratic, but who also have voted in lower percentages than other groups in some recent elections: young voters and Black voters. Richmond is home to one of the biggest concentrations of Black voters in the state, along with portions of Norfolk and areas of Northern Virginia.

Obama’s visit was also meant to focus Virginia voters on the national context of the governor’s race, framing it through the lens of issues beyond the state. McAuliffe is talking about abortion to voters in Northern Virginia, an issue that has national stakes with the looming decision at the Supreme Court next year in a Mississippi case that could repeal Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in every state.

But the even wider lens is the attempt by former President Trump to restore himself to legitimacy despite his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection, where he spoke to a crowd near the White House, repeated his false claims about the 2020 election and told them to march to the U.S. Capitol and “fight like hell.”

Trump’s supporters then waged a violent assault on the Capitol in an attempt to stop the 2020 election results from being certified, with some chanting that they intended to kill members of Congress and even Trump’s vice president, Republican Mike Pence.

“It was a violent attack to disenfranchise the votes of 80 million people. Folks, they didn’t want your votes to count ... they wanted to erase your vote,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., told the crowd.

“Can’t we have a small ‘d’ democracy and can everyday people participate? That is what’s at stake,” Kaine said.

Former President Barack Obama campaigns with Terry McAuliffe at Virginia Commonwealth University on Saturday in Richmond, Va. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump has portrayed what happened on Jan. 6 as a good thing. There are some signs that a few Republican leaders want the direction to choose a different standard-bearer in the 2024 presidential election, but that resistance is limited at this point, and Trump’s narrative enjoys the support of the right-wing media.

It was this larger context that Obama sought to crystallize for those in the audience at VCU, and those who would consume his speech in sound bites on social media.

“Our democracy is what makes America great. It’s what makes us the shining city on the hill, this extraordinary experiment in self-government. Protecting and preserving that shouldn’t be a partisan issue. It didn’t used to be,” he said.

The move to nationalize the race in Virginia mirrors what Democrats did in California ahead of the Sept. 14 recall election, which Gov. Gavin Newsom won decisively. Democrats were concerned about Newsom’s fate over the summer but were able to stabilize the race once they brought in household names that raised awareness about the campaign among less engaged members of their voter base and talked about the contest in the context of national politics.

Like Newsom, McAuliffe — who was Virginia’s governor from 2014 to 2018 and was limited to one consecutive term by the commonwealth’s constitution — is seeking to beat back a motivated Republican grassroots that is hungry for a victory in a state that was won decisively by Joe Biden in 2020. Biden will campaign with McAuliffe in Arlington on Tuesday.